Cyprus president shakes up cabinet, replacing ministers of defense, health, justice and environment

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The president of Cyprus on Monday moved ahead with a considerable shakeup of his cabinet, replacing his ministers of defense, health, justice and environment as well as the deputy ministers responsible for digital policy and European affairs in one fell swoop after just 10 months in power.

Monday’s move comes after weeklong speculation about which of the 16 cabinet posts would see new faces following a newspaper interview in which President Nikos Christodoulides indicated that the shakeup would soon be in the offing.

Vassilis Palmas, the new minister of defense, is an old political hand who has acted as government spokesman and a deputy minister in two previous administrations.

New Health Minister Michalis Damianos is a lawyer with his own practice, while history professor Maria Panayiotou gets a promotion from environment commissioner to environment and agriculture minister.

Marios Hartsiotis, a lawyer with a theology degree, takes up the ministry of justice. Another notable appointment is that of Marilena Raouna, a close associate of Christodoulides, who moves over from chief of the president’s diplomatic office to the post of deputy minister for European affairs.

In the interview with daily Fileleftheros on the last day of 2023, Christodoulides said he “would certainly” reshuffle his cabinet before the first 18 months of his five-year tenure, saying that some ministers “met expectations and some less.”

That appeared to have rattled his cabinet, prompting Christodoulides to tell his ministers publicly during a meeting last week to discount media speculation and assuring them that they would hear any changes personally from him.

But the speculation and its associated pressures prompted the previous deputy minister of innovation, research and digital policy, Philippos Hadjizacharias, to resign three days prior to Monday’s actual cabinet reshuffle.